| Living
Waters Newsletter
August
2006
Lake Victoria’s Lighthouse
of H2OPE
Kaswanga/Wanyama
Rusinga, Mbita, Kenya |
| It
is a privilege to report the events of the past
two months to so many of you who have faithfully
supported Living Waters by many different means.
It has been but a short time since a group of six
returned from south of the equator in Kenya. Our
experience is one of extremes; from high to low
and back to high. I would like to share our story
and I hope that you will not only enjoy it but that
you will be inspired to yield your life and resources
to a happiness that cannot be written on mere sheets
of paper. There is a heart inspired |
|
| change
that takes place when you are part of helping others
that are helpless to help themselves. This was experienced
greatest by the opportunity we had to do the simplest
of sharing. Assisting with feeding hundreds of little
children, with the rain pouring down on us and sharing
a kind word that Jesus loves them is one experience
that none in our group will ever forget. |
Organizational
Status
But
let’s retrace events since our last newsletter.
In July Living Waters International was officially
formed and recognized by the Arizona Corporation
Commission as a non-profit corporation. We are
governed by a Board of Directors, of which I am
grateful for the experience and expertise that
they bring to Living Waters.
|
Acknowledgments |
If you are
receiving this newsletter, you most likely
have a vested interest in the project at
Kaswanga. The Living Waters “Lake
Victoria’s Lighthouse of H2OPE”
would not be possible without the dedicated
support of each of you. On behalf of every
person in Kaswanga, Wanyama and elsewhere
in Kenya who received a benefit from the
Living Waters project and from our Board
I want to say a big “thank you”.
Thank you
to Ace Hardware, Buds Plumbing, Payson Paint
and Wal-Mart for the help with supplies.
Thank you ADRA for the help in transportation
coordination and supply delivery.
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Thank
you to The Quiet Hour, Arizona Conference of Seventh-day
Adventists and the women of the Payson SDA church
for the beautiful Bible story felt sets that provided
3 churches and thousands of people with the first
visual aids for teaching Bible stories. Thank you
KARA, Globe and Copper Cities Rotary clubs for funding
the shipping of the 12 tubs of medical supplies,
drip irrigation systems, tools and the water filtration
and purification system. |
Your
Contributions at Work |
|
The
July trip to Kaswanga was a success. The scope
of the trip covered 26 days, with 6 mission
minded staff volunteering their personal time,
energy and resources. No less than 4 staff
was ill from amoeba related disease. There
were no significant injuries reported from
this extremely strenuous work however, one
of our local Kaswangan’s team member
died 4 days into the project.
The
Impact of your Contributions has directly
reduce the incidence of waterborne diseases
by providing fresh water; provided medical
supplies for the local clinic, food for the
hungry, educational programs for school children
and support to the orphans. |
| Your
contributions are for to the Board of Directors.
We continue
to work on Phase 2 as it has yet to be completed.
We
are working on efficient means to have ongoing
work accomplished by hiring a local engineer
who has accepted the position of Living Waters
onsite project coordinator. |
|
| A
special thank you to each of you who
sacrificed your financial resources to assist
people whom you have never met, to provide
them with opportunities of fresh water, thereby
reducing the waterborne diseases that are
a contributing factor for 75 percent of the
deaths in this area. Your sacrifice is allowing
families to successfully grow gardens to feed
not only their starving children, but they
in turn are assisting with feeding the orphan
children who have no adult to help them meet
their hunger needs. |
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| All
of you are truly awesome. Your contributions were
an affirmation to us that we were indeed following
Gods will in spreading the Good News. |
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| |
Our
Story
My
son Joby, and I left one week before the rest
of the group so we could have a head start with
the project. We anticipated potential problems
with supply delivery and labor availability and
felt impressed to get an early start.
July
12th arrived and at 2 am. Joby and I were completing
the final checklist of all the preparations that
had to be completed before we left. We still needed
to pack our carry on luggage (which held all of
our personal belongings) and planned to leave
at 2:30 am. We started our long 40 hour journey
after 2 nights without sleeping more than 2 hours.
|
Food
for the Children:
The
first full day in Nairobi provided both
of us with a most shocking experience. We
met with a retired physician, Dr. Hal Burchel
who was working in the Kibera slums. This
is the world’s second largest slum
and has over one-million people living in
situations that can not be described. This
was our first opportunity to visit the feeding
program funded and directed by JL Williams’s
founder of New Directions. (www.NewDirections.org).
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|
| Seven
hundred children are fed three meals a day
by dedicated staff who cook massive amounts
of food in huge pots. The children bring whatever
small bowl-like container they have and get
one scoop of beans and potatoes or cabbage
and ugali. They most likely will only eat
a small portion of the bowl’s contents
as they have siblings at home who have nothing.
Soon you see the children disappear in a maze
of humanity as the kids take their brother
or sister a few bites. |
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|
In
my humble opinion this is one of the ministries
that comes closest to what I imagine Christ’s
compassion for man to be. There are 3 other
feeding programs in the slum, one of which
is near extinction due to a lack of funding.
Twenty cents, just twenty pennies feeds a
child, 3 meals a day, yet 400 children are
about to loose this simplest of basic needs
because of a lack of money. Our hearts were
seared with coals of compassion that words
will never describe. |
| When
the rest of the crew arrived the following week,
they each had the incredible experience of handing
children bowls of food, rain pouring down their
backs and bright smiles of appreciation for
a meager bite of food. |
|
Across
Kenya, camera in hand:
Joby
and I continued our journey across Kenya with the
constant clicking of Joby’s camera. His initial
purpose was to document the Living Waters project
for his senior internship as a communication major.
His role became invaluable and the lives he touched
included many. In return God touched his. In the
villages of Mbita and Kaswanga young and old who
I never had met would ask, “Where is Joby”?
Our
first day was filled with meetings and introductions
which are very formal and necessary. Our second
and third day included a general assessment of all
of the project areas and formalizing the action
plan to complete the projects that I naively thought
I could accomplish. |
| Our
Challenges began..
 |
Our
supplies had not arrived nor
had the project coordinator from ADRA.
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The
need to dig a
10’ deep trench 300 feet long to
the lake: |
| This
is where the 4 inch pipe will provide
an unlimited supply of water to the windmill
cistern. The water is to flow by gravity
and fill a 20 foot deep well. This provided
a challenge because the well needed to
be dug 10 feet deeper so the pipe would
drain well below the lake level. |
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|
Well
drilling consisted of 2 men in a three foot
diameter hole scooping mud and water into
buckets to be raised by ropes. As fast as
they worked the water continued to fill the
hole. This required the use of a broken water
pump and petro to fuel the broken pump. This
meant new parts before the work could continue.
Parts were only 1 hour away which is a 2 hour
round trip. |
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|
The
local transportation that had been arranged
for us consisted of a “very much in
need of burying” pick-up truck. Every
day we had to get something on the truck repaired
just to get us and whatever supplies we could
buy to the work site. |
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And
then there's the pump: In the process
of removing the existing water pump from the
windmill it was discovered that the pump was
in need of significant repair. After contacting
the only windmill pump manufacturer in Kenya
we found out that the parts had been on backorder
for that particular size pump but that we could
purchase a new pump with a greater capacity.
This all sounded great until we got the final
price for the new pump, which included a four
day visit by a pump technician to install it,
his travel, meals and lodging expenses. |
|
God's
Wonderful Provision:
Joby
and I were to go to Nairobi to work on the pump
purchase and to meet the rest of the group. At the
last minute we were informed that the vehicle that
was to take us would not be allowed to leave Mbita.
We were dropped off at the local ferry that would
take us across a section of a large bay and deposit
us in unknown territory. We then could catch a matatu
(something that resembles a dead mini van with about
30-40 nationals in it) for a 22 hour ride to Nairobi.
Instead, God opened the way for us to catch a ride
in an occupied taxi to the city of Kisumu where
we caught a quick flight to Nairobi. This may all
seem pretty easy, but it wasn’t. The last
flight for the day on which we had been booked was
cancelled and it took a token (politically correct
word for bribe) to get us on the only other flight
that was leaving.
We
were delighted to successfully connect with the
rest of our group: my wife Mary Jo, my oldest son
Justin and Charles and Anthony, staff from White
Horse Media. A very special thanks to White Horse
Media and its Board of Directors who authorized
Charles and Anthony to travel to Kenya and do a
professional film documentary on the Living Waters
project. This will provide a broad base of exposure
and attention for additional funding sources to
this project. |
Out
of Africa-
God's
Magnificent Creation:
We
had a very short but most interesting opportunity
to take a side trip to the largest wild game
park in Kenya, the Maasai Mara Game preserve.
Here we would sleep in a basic camp near the
Maasai village and take morning and evening
game drives into the heart of the wild kingdom.
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|
 |
While
some people find great pleasure in the
sport of killing these magnificent animals,
we were content to shoot them with a camera.Kenya
has seen the wisdom in prohibiting wild
game hunts as the financial impact from
tourists experiencing these creatures
living it their natural surroundings far
outweighs big game hunting dollars. |
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|
We
experienced the migration season of the zebras
and wildebeest. For miles and miles as far
as the eye could see or imagine, there were
animals migrating to the tall savannah like
grasses that covered the rolling plains of
the northern end of the Serengeti.
Up
close and personal, we experienced
huge herds of elephants, at one location numbering
close to 100. We watched lion cubs play as
their mothers kept a watchful eye and we were
within feet of magnificent males basking in
the sun on the large lava rocks. |
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|
Patience
Has Her Perfect Work:
After
leaving the Maasai Mara we traveled for 10 hours
over very rough terrain to Mbita. The roads prohibited
traveling any faster that an average of 15 mph.
By the time we reached our destination that evening
we were sore and bruised from the jostling. |
Early
the next morning we left the village of Mbita
where we would be staying for the next week
to travel daily to the village of Wanyama.
This is where Mary Jo would present her first
of 5 health talks to about 450 children. From
the beginning this day proved to be a disaster.
The generator that was supplied lacked fuel
so it was a quick trip back to Mbita for fuel.
When the fuel arrived, the carburetor needed
repaired so that took extra time. All this
time the students were noisily anxious for
the program to begin. Finally, the generator
started and “on with the show”.
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|
I
moved to the next project 3 miles away to where
the well diggers were to be working at the windmill.
To my dismay, nobody was working. I found out that
several things had happened. The money we had provided
to pay for the wages arrived 4 days late. Therefore
nobody was going to work until I showed up with
money to meet payroll, which is to be paid daily.
Secondly, the local person who had committed to
organizing the local labors had died while I was
gone to Nairobi. And lastly, those who were there
to work, were just not working. This last incident
was one of the invaluable lessons that I was about
to learn, but would not understand until I left
Kaswanga and returned to the States. You see, life
is lived much differently there. There is no sense
of time being an important factor. Efficiency is
not understood and my type A personality made a
difficult situation even more difficult, for the
local villagers and myself alike. Having a goal
is a must, but expecting that my agenda and hard
work would accomplish that goal in an effective
and efficient manner was not the priority of the
local people. About
this time I received word from Mary Jo that the
generator had surged and that the power supply to
her computer which she was using for her health
talks had burnt up. From then on she had to rely
on the only other availability for the talks. Her
notes.
The
local villagers would laugh at my desperate attempts
to get the project on track for my attempts would
interfere with the “greetings of the day”.
I would laugh and tell them that I had much to learn
of their culture and then try to slow my anxiety
down to a snail’s pace to accommodate their
expectations. My attempts usually lasted a couple
of hours before additional frustrations brought
out my expressions of needing to keep the project
progressing. This is all I will say regarding my
frustration at the lack efficiency. |
| Fresh
Food for the Hungry!
The
gardens that were planted in April with the
drip irrigation systems we installed were
flourishing. The irrigation committee chairman
Narkihso had tripled his yield by cultivating
3 plots next to each other and moving the
irrigation system each day to another plot.
All of the gardens were on their third crop
of vegetables since April. This was evidence
of the value of these simple inexpensive systems. |
|
| Joby
took responsibility for the drip irrigation
systems. He developed a mechanism that would
ensure individual success to those who were
to receive the additional systems. Instead
of giving the systems to individuals where
there was no real accountability, he decided
they should be turned over to the irrigation
committee. It than became the responsibility
of the irrigation committee to designate who
should get the systems and to follow-up to
determine that the systems were indeed being
utilized as planned. Joby developed a simple
contract for each person who would receive
a system. The contract had conditions for
the receiver to follow in order to keep the
system. |
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| These
included things like: |
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Fencing
the garden to keep the goats out |
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Growing vegetables
as planned |
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Maintenance
of the system |
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Notification
to the committee if there were problems |
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| The
Committee would also do random inspections to make
sure the system is being utilized. |
 |
Another
plan for the irrigation systems is for graduates
of the Nybola Secondary Girls School. A system
was given to the school and they will provide
a course curriculum in Gardening. Each student
will have the opportunity to grow their own
garden plot. Students, who have been in this
program for 2 years before graduation, will
be presented with a system to take with them
to their new homes. This provides an ongoing
opportunity for the girls to use what they have
learned and provide for their families. |
|
Joby
is currently planning on recruiting 6 students from
Pacific Union College, do fundraising and travel
to Kaswanga over their Christmas break to install
100 additional garden systems. This could directly
benefit up to 1000 people, mostly orphans. This
will be a tremendous amount of hard work for these
young men and women, so please keep them in your
prayers.
The
drip irrigation systems will become one of Living
Waters major objectives. The systems that Joby will
be installing will primarily be for grandparent
and foster parent headed homes for orphans. This
will provide opportunity for more orphans to be
cared for by grandparents, relatives and foster
parents. By increasing the availability of food,
more orphans will find homes available for their
care. Justin reported that at one child-headed home
he visited, the children reported receiving a meal
every 3 days. With your help and commitment Living
Waters intends to change this. |
Time
Winding Down:
The
well digging had to be stopped 2 days before
we were to leave because the slow progress
was interfering with the need to get water
flowing from the windmill again. While the
windmill was taken out of commission there
was no water supplied to the school which
is dependent on it.
The
trenching was progressing and by Thursday
(2 days before we were to leave) the plumbers
were starting to lay the ½ mile of
2 inch galvanized pipe that would carry water
Kaswanga village. |
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|
 |
This was
the day that we met the enormous challenge
of getting a mammoth size plastic water
tank 30 feet into the air and inside of
the existing elevated steel tank, which
we had found too costly to repair.
We removed
the lid off of the old tank and attempted
to hoist a mammoth 2000 gallon water tank
up into it. I can not describe the difficulty
in accomplishing this endeavour, but let
it suffice to say that 10 men in the elevated
tank and 3 men
|
|
working
from the bottom could not seem to get the
tank to roll over the last 6 inches of the
side wall. We were literally “at the
end of our rope” with no more strength
to muster in the 110 degree heat and after
2 hours of intense pulling we thought we would
fail. At that moment it was as if an angel
just gave the last little push and the tank
rolled up and over the wall. I knew at that
very moment a miracle had happened. There
was no doubt in my mind that angels assisted
at the point when I realized that “we
in ourselves could not physically do this
on our own”.
This
was also the day that we completed the construction
of a security platform surrounded by metal
mesh to secure the purification system. We
had designed this platform half way up the
elevated tank.
Using
timbers, wire mesh and some steel plate we
built a secure steel box with a locking latch
which was enclosed inside a wire mesh area
that also had a gate and a lock. The challenges
of getting this built were many and yes, miracles
again happened. |
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|
| The
simplest of things we take for granted are unconceivable
in the bush of Africa. God had many lessons for me
to learn while on this trip and I am sure I am still
learning them. For most local villagers it would be
very difficult to plan what we would consider a simple
action plan for a particular project. This is not
because these people are ignorant. It is because they
have seldom had much of anything to work with and
the abstract idea of projecting what your supply needs
are in advance has never been developed. It is a lesson
that I would learn that had less to do with the lack
of what they had, but more on how incredibly blessed
we have been as a nation, society and culture to have
had the opportunity to have these concepts instilled
into our every day way of thinking. |
 |
The
Final Day:
Our
last workday on the project dawned with full
expectation that by the end of the day the
project would be complete and our mission
would be accomplished. After all, I believed
that by doing what we had been called to do
would assure us of success. Again, my optimism
and enthusiasm were both to be put to the
test. For months I had meticulously prepared
every |
|
detail, brought supplies for the unexpected,
and anticipated every scenario so that this
project would be completed, but as the day
progressed I found out that the project was
stalling and the hands of the clock were ticking
away fast. By 2 pm I was starting to doubt
that we would indeed complete what we had
set out to do. After all, that was my measurement
of success. It was absolutely imperative that
the windmill pump start pumping water by now,
so I could start the purification system up,
test it and start filling the 3 tanks that
sat waiting to hold purified water for the
villagers. What, another delay? Another trip
to Mbita for another cutting and welding of
pipe to make the windmill functional! |
|
|
| If
you can picture this:
In
shear desperation I am hurrying from one project
location to the next. The sun is hot, I am out of
water, and I have lost 15 pounds in 10 days. I am
walking 15 miles per day trying to coordinate all
aspects of this project. I am down to the few remaining
hours; the water filtration and purification system
are installed. All I need is for the water to flow.
|
 |
At 5 pm,
when I reach the windmill site, just 30
minutes before our Sabbath begins, we are
blessed with an unexpected miracle. The
repairs to the windmill have been completed
and the water is beginning to be pumped.
It must reach the elevated tank almost a
mile away and then we can have pure water
flowing. The plumbers have completed the
last connection of pipe in the village and
the water kiosk and valves are in place.
They
must connect one last pipe that will tie
the entire system together. This will connect
the tank that supplies the village thus
connecting everything we had been working
towards.
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|
| We
are desperately trying to beat the clock and finish
this job before Sabbath and just then the devil gives
a final attempt to create failure. As the last piece
of pipe is connected at the concrete tank, the water
outlet on the tank blows out, leaving a gaping 12
inch diameter hole in the side of the tank near the
bottom. This requires a mason (who completes the repair
in 1 hour) and 2 days for the concrete to cure. It
is finished. There is nothing for me to do but admit
defeat. It is absolutely certain that water will not
be flowing into Kaswanga before we must depart. I
feel a sense of both failure and relief. I feel as
if I had failed to complete what I came for, yet I
feel relieved that nothing else could go wrong. I
was done. I could not accomplish anything else. We
could not stay even an extra day because we had spent
every bit of our funds. We did not have enough left
for another night of lodging or extra meals. We were
totally empty of energy, time, enthusiasm, ideas and
money. We had enough to return to Nairobi, barring
anything more than fuel and food. |
Disappointment?
You
see, tomorrow, Sabbath was to be a spectacular celebration.
Plans had been put into place to have a community
celebration with thousands of villagers present
to turn on the water. This was to be the culminating
event. This was to be the end of the story for the
film crew. This was our mission accomplished celebration.
This was to be the goal of months of planning, fund
raising, finagling and anxiety. This was to be our
high day. |
 |
No
Regrets! |
|
| That
night as I lay exhausted, I asked God to reveal to
me why. I was sure I was sent to accomplish this task
and yet, I was to leave without it being completed.
Here I list some of the reasons that I feel God gave
me these types of challenges.
|
1.
We know that we are doing something right
for God when so many curves get thrown our
way. The more successful this project, the
more of Gods love shines through and that
is something that the devil will do his best
to prevent.
2· There were enormous lessons to be
gained regarding our total dependence of God.
Each day and each trial were overcome by submitting
“that only by His power would we accomplish
our task”. If self got in the way, we
had the opportunity to be brought back to
reality.
3· There is something positive to be
said regarding our leaving without completion
of the project. It leaves a responsibility
for the local villagers to complete it (of
which I have no doubt they will) but more
importantly, it strengthens our faith that
God is ultimately in control. It is His project
with which we have been entrusted to do the
very best we could, and we did. Yet, there
is always room to learn to trust and that
is where we left this project. |
|
| God
is So Good!
When
we pause to consider the accomplishments and we
can but awe at all that was done. After all together
in seven days together we had; |
|
Provided
health talks to over 1000 children, giving
them basic information that provides them
the opportunity to take some control with
the health of their life |
|
|
Almost
completed a trench, 10 feet deep and 300 feet
long |
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Started
the process of deepening the well |
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Trench
and laid ½ mile of water pipe |
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A
new 5 inch water pump was purchased and installed |
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Refitted
the unusable elevated water tank with a 2000
gallon new tank |
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Created
a system of 6 water tanks for holding purified
water |
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Built
an elevated security zone to house the purifier
with space to accommodate 2 workers and a
movable solar panel system to capture the
sun as it moves east to west |
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The
supplies for this project were purchased by
donations |
|
Joby
coordinated the installation of 20 drip irrigation
systems for garden plots that will supply
approximately 200 people with fresh vegetables.
My eldest son Justin also worked diligently
with this project. |
|
1000
orphan children were provided bars of soap
for body washing |
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6
large plastic rubbermaid tubs of medical supplies
were delivered to the medical clinic |
|
Three,
large Bible story felts sets were provided
to local churches. These were primarily given
to assist in teaching young children about
Jesus and His love, yet the adults alike found
them to be fascinating |
|
The
film crew did a fabulous job of capturing
the scope and reality of the project |
|
An
incredible opportunity for a father and 2
sons to bond as only this type of experience
will afford |
|
And
last but not least. Between 8000 and
9000 people saw the powerful and gripping
"Jesus" video.
|
Understand this
is no small feat! With a generator, projector,
DVD player and large piece of white material
we showed this incredible movie in their language
on a 20 x 20 foot screen. For those who have
never seen this movie, you have really missed
something. It was incredible to watch it in
Luo and yet feel the indescribable power it
contained. It brings to life how wonderful
and sacrificing Jesus was. Every part of His
life was to help others, even with His dying
breath. On the last night I was running the
equipment which was located in a “sea
of little children”. There were about
1800 young children crammed so tightly together
that I could not move from my position. The
people could really identify with the story
as it was filmed showing conditions that were
very much like the living conditions of these
local people. It showed the daily hardships
and struggles that were basically mirror images
of how these villagers live. The hunger, illness
and death were so much a part of life then
and now. I can not tell you how great and
powerful that was. |
|
| Out
trip was coming to an end and we were all relieved
to be returning to a life where everything isn’t
difficult. Even though some of our team suffered amoeba
related illnesses, and we were constantly challenged
with new issues, I am sure we all felt that our experience
was truly “one of a lifetime” and that
we all gained incredible insight to “our life
of plenty”. |
Where
do we go from here?
There
is much to be done and this project continues. We
have evaluated ways to effectively continue with
meeting the needs of this area. The water project
is not complete. We continue with this phase by
adding another water kiosk which will require another
½ mile of pipe. The original system has been
upgraded with additional sediment filters but needs
to be tied into the main water supply for the school.
We were delighted to hear that all cases of typhoid
were eliminated and most of the dysentery has been
eradicated. The government was about to close the
school because of the poor water quality and now
they have been allowed to continue. The original
system can provide 1000 gallons of pure water daily
to the school. The drip irrigation systems are providing
the 3rd crop of vegetables since their installation
in April.
People’s
lives are being significantly impacted by the project
of Living Waters. Lifestyle behavior changes are
reported by many authorities and life expectancy
will be impacted. Seventy five percent of the diseases
are related to the impure water and that is being
improved.
You
have all had a part in making this happen. You can
feel grateful that your contributions are making
a difference. Without each of you as donors, this
would not be happening. Yet, there is much to do.
We have exhausted our funds for this project and
so the cycle continues. Living Waters is in need
of your support again. We have come a long way,
yet the job is not finished. We desire to continue
on and to provide the following: |
Completion of the digging of the well
Complete the gravity feed water system bringing
lake water to the well, thus eliminating the
need to use a gasoline powered pump since they
have no money for the fuel
Refitting the windmill for the deeper well
Repair the windmill transmission system
Installing another ½ mile of water pipe
for another kiosk
Installing the Tom Mboya Secondary School purification
system inline, thus providing fresh water to
all who use this resource on campus, including;
staff housing, the dorms, water kiosk and kitchen.
Install 100 additional drip irrigation systems
to grandparent and foster parent headed homes
for the orphans
Provide 3 more churches with Bible felt sets
Encourage sponsors for orphans to be fed and
attend school. A child could be sponsored for
$30/month. |
|
| The
need is great but your individual resources combined
will provide Living Waters the ability to continue
this valuable work on the island of Rusinga. Time
is of an essence. Lives are being lost and lives are
being saved. Please help us in saving these people’s
lives. Thank you for your continuing support. |
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